Pyramid Amber Weizen
Walnut Creek Alehouse (Pyramid)

Pyramid Amber WeizenPyramid Amber Weizen
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From:
Walnut Creek Alehouse (Pyramid)
 
California, United States
Style:
American Dark Wheat Beer
ABV:
5.5%
Score:
74
Avg:
3.02 | pDev: 17.55%
Reviews:
26
Ratings:
30
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Feb 28, 2015
Added:
Mar 01, 2005
Wants:
  1
Gots:
  1
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by RJLarse:
Photo of RJLarse
Reviewed by RJLarse from Washington

2.62/5  rDev -13.2%
look: 2 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
I had never seen this beer until I ran across it in the grocery store. Hefe Weizen is my favorite beer style, so I picked up a six pack of this to try and review. I poured this beer in to a pint tumbler.

Pours a cloudy nut brown color with a slight orange hue. One finger of light head dissipates quickly to a thin film. The head is not resilient or sticky. As beer goes this one is not much to look at

The smell is a little weak, but very much like a regular hefe. It has a sweet fruity aroma, with a bit of a hop smell. Not much of a roasted scent which was what I was looking/sniffing for.

The taste is also very hefe-like, with a very slight roasted grain flavor. There is some mild malt presence. It is not as robust an amber as I thought it would be. The taste is also fruity, citrusy, lemony, with a very mild hop finish. The aftertaste is very faint and short-lived.

Mouth feel is light, crisp and refreshing. It is again very reminiscent of a regular Hefe Weizen.

This is a drinkable beer. The flavors are very mild and not particularly captivating. Basically this is a very mildly roasted version of a regular hefe. I drank this one “straight” for the review, but I think a slice of lemon would enhance it’s flavor.* I would drink Amber Hefeweizen again, but I can’t find a reason to choose this over a regular Hefe Weizen.

* lemon was an improvement.
Feb 26, 2006
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 3.5 by Winston3737 from Michigan

Feb 28, 2015
 
Rated: 2.75 by LXIXME from New Mexico

Jan 02, 2014
 
Rated: 2.5 by TexAggie011 from Texas

Jan 09, 2012
 
Rated: 3 by schoun from Texas

Jan 07, 2012
Photo of bmwats
Reviewed by bmwats from Louisiana

2.92/5  rDev -3.3%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3
Poured from a 12 oz. bottle into a standard pint.

A: A little cloudy, medium-dark brown. Not really anything of a head to speak of. No lacing.

S: Wheat, yeast, and a little Italian spice. A touch of lemon, and an indistinct sweet aroma.

T: Very wheaty, with the yeasty nature of freshly baked bread. Kind of a sweet tea thing going on with the savory of clove and oregano. Pretty woody.

M: Light in body with a grainy mouthfeel. Lightly pungent yeasty aftertaste.

D: The light body makes this a refreshing brew, with only a lightly off-putting finish.

Atmosphere is pretty average. Appearance is acceptable, but no real head and no lacing. Nose is a fair combination of grain tones, with a bit of savory spice and sweetness. Flavor is wheaty, yeasty, sweet, and savory... not a poorly done combination. But does have something of a grainy feel. Overall, this is an okay quaff.
Apr 14, 2011
Photo of EnojysAnyBeer
Reviewed by EnojysAnyBeer from Colorado

3.7/5  rDev +22.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
I dunno what everyone is complaining about, but I've never had a beer of this style so I'm no pro.

A- Dark caramel with a hint of copper rod. Some sediment and a hazy transluscency. Weak tan head

S- Smell is OK but I can see how this would turn some people off. banana/clove esters along with a sweet malt backbone.

T- Taste is like the smell but the caramel malt is more dominant and some dark fruit flavors make an appearance. Label says there are nugget hops, but I don't really get a hoppy feel except maybe in the aftertaste.

M- Feels great, I love the feel of unfiltered beer. Moderate body and smooth carbonation

D- Drinks good but I feel the ABV% should be higher
Aug 18, 2008
Photo of PiecefulToker
Reviewed by PiecefulToker from Tennessee

3.6/5  rDev +19.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
A: Opaque and hazy, dark amber, reddish copper. Large bubbled head quickly dissipates. Little lacing.

S: Caramel, dark sugars, crystallized wheat, some yeastiness.

T: Sweet caramel with a mild toasted wheat follow through. Not overly sweet, it has a nice nuttiness that is very appealing.

M: Smooth, carbonation good.

D: Pretty high, though not as high as other Pyramid brews.
Jun 26, 2008
Photo of Gehrig
Reviewed by Gehrig from Illinois

3.43/5  rDev +13.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
Burnt orange body topped by a slightly tan head that dissipates too quickly for this nice-looking brew. Too faint aroma, some grain malt and the faintest hint of citrus hops. Not bad taste, smooth and nicely malted with some caramel and a bit of berry. More flavor, however, is necessary to make this a better beer. Not bad, but not bold. Nice carbonation, nice texture, smooth--the best part is the mouthfeel, in my humble opinion. Decent beer in all, nothing to knock the proverbial socks off, but not one to turn down.
May 29, 2008
Photo of biggred1
Reviewed by biggred1 from Indiana

3.06/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
A-Cloudy dark reddish brown with suspended yeast visible.Thin tan head with minimal lace.

S-Very mild nose some sweet malts and a faint apple fuitiness.

T/M-Rich and chocolaty almost like a fudge popsicle.No bitterness or hops detected,creamy smooth mouthfeel with a squeaky clean finish.

D-Kind of weird take on the style but not bad,unique at least and unoffensive.
Apr 30, 2008
Photo of JDV
Reviewed by JDV from Texas

2.62/5  rDev -13.2%
look: 4 | smell: 2 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Pours a light cloudy reddish orange color with a medium white head. There is a swirl of the fine yeast particles visible. Smell is subtle at first and different than any beer I've smelld before. There is some sweetness to the smell and the rest is hard to pinpoint. Perhaps its from the wheat. Not a traditional hop or malt smell... Taste is fairly smooth, and creamy for the style I think. It's very lightly hopped. Not any noteworthy bitterness but it has something different in the taste too. Maybe its just the wheat, but I don't know. Not my favorite, but not undrinkable. I actually thought this was an amber until seeing the description on this page.
Jan 31, 2008
Photo of Bookseeb
Reviewed by Bookseeb from Washington

3.41/5  rDev +12.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Appearance is a murky amber with a head that dissapates real quick. Smell has not much to it, mild and clean. Taste has a light caramel sweetness, toasted malts and a bit fruity. Mouthfeel light to medium with good body. It has a good amount of carbonation that helps make it crisp and refreshing making it not too bad a beer, worth a try.
Jul 19, 2007
Photo of geokills
Reviewed by geokills from California

3.51/5  rDev +16.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
Cloudy amber out of the bottle, pours with a moderate head that disappates to produce a very fine lacing throughout the duration of the drink. An easy drinker, refreshing enough for a mild summer's afternoon while hearty enough for a winter's night by the fire. With a tangy aftertaste, all in all a decent and versatile brew with a comfortable mouthfeel that I find suitable to drink most anytime.
Jun 20, 2007
Photo of TurdFurgison
Reviewed by TurdFurgison from Ohio

2.94/5  rDev -2.6%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Poured from a 12oz bottle into a pint glass. The beer was hazy and copper colored, with a thin tan head. The smell was too weak to make an impact, slightly malty. No yeasty by-products I prefer from wheat beers, but then they didn't use a hefe yeast strain I think (maybe only Pyramid house yeast). The taste was kind of blandish too, more malty than not but not rich in any way. The best I can say is it's refreshing. But much more could have been done.
May 28, 2007
Photo of theopholis
Reviewed by theopholis from California

3/5  rDev -0.7%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Appreance- Was very cloudy, light mud color. No head at all.

Aroma- Basically, smelled of a dark, European wheat with a dash of malt sweetness. No hops, no banana, no clove.

Taste- Not nearly as sweet as the European dark wheat. I don't know if this is a good example of an American dark wheat or not. It tasted okay.

Drinkability- Semi-refreshing. Medium body, CO2 level good.

Failry drinkable. Worht a shot.
Feb 16, 2007
Photo of beeragent
Reviewed by beeragent from Texas

3.76/5  rDev +24.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Poured from a 12oz. bottle, into a pint glass. The beer poured a hazy deep amber, forming a nice 1 inch head, that left thick lacing on the glass. Not much in the nose. A little wheat, and a slight bit of hops. The flavor is interesting. Not much in the way of wheat, but more like sweet malt and a little citrus. Nice thick mouthfeel, with a smooth finish. Not exactly what was expected, but still tasty. I could drink a few of these in a session.
Jan 03, 2007
Photo of GeoffRizzo
Reviewed by GeoffRizzo from Texas

2.67/5  rDev -11.6%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5
Beautiful see-through amber in color, a dissipating head that once held life. Major malts on the nose, there is also a hint of caramel and cotton candy. Sweet malts and caramel noted in the initial sips; grainy malts and a sweet granny apple like flavoring noted. Highly carbonated, struggling to get to medium bodied. The palate is left with a sweet caramel candy after-taste. The body failed to develop; a rather risky attempt on the bottle to advertise the nugget hops—they’re tough to detect, if they’re there. One last jab--an American Dark Wheat--um no! One to skip; might be ok on a 110.4 degree sticky day.
Nov 21, 2006
Photo of jmbranum
Reviewed by jmbranum from Oklahoma

3.06/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4
Dark amber brew with smallish head. Nice hazy appearance in the glass.

Aroma is mostly malty. The flavor is . . . also malty, but with little wheat flavor to speak of at all.

I love dark wheat beers (i.e. Aventinus and other dunkel heffeweizens), but this beer is a bit bland for it's style. It is very smooth but to me would be much improved with some citric bite. Definitely too sweet.

Also I don't like the excessively sweet weird funky aftertaste.

I normally like Pyramid beers but this one is a disappointment.
Nov 07, 2006
Photo of Mebuzzard
Reviewed by Mebuzzard from Colorado

2.78/5  rDev -7.9%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5
Not too impressed with this one. Poured a hazy light amber with minimal head..looked flat.
Smelled flat, some malt, some yeast, just a touch above vinegar.

Taste was not as bad. A wheat beer, without much wheat and more malt. Some bitterness, but not enough for balance.
Finishes weak, yet it does leave the mouth fairly quickly.
Sep 13, 2006
Photo of idResponse
Reviewed by idResponse from North Carolina

1.46/5  rDev -51.7%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 1 | feel: 2 | overall: 1
This is seriously one of the worst beers I have ever had. Perhaps I had a bad batch, perhaps I just don't like dark wheat ales and don't know it yet, but this is seriously a disgusting piece of Pyramid. I've liked a couple Pyramid beers but have never been all that impressed. This beer turned out to be a nightmare. It looked okay, so I picked up a six pack from the store. I got home, cracked it open, and took a whiff... then looked at the label, then smelled it again... it boasts a caramel apple flavoring... that's a caramel apple? smells like a caramel carcass. I took a swig... OH GOD I wanted to hurl. I took a few more gulps hoping it would get better. OH man is this bad. I even tried muscling my way though another 12oz bottle, hoping the first one was bad... Nope...

The rest of the week I kept trying to drink these hoping the next one would redeem the rest. Each time I had to force myself to finish it, or toss the rest of it out before I became ill. The mouthfeel was horrible, the taste was disgusting, and the drinkability was wrong.

I would seriously pick up a 211 Steel Reserve before drinking this swill.
I'm really sorry... The Curveball wasn't too bad, and their summer ales aren't so bad - but they really aren't anything special.

This beer... was BAD. I regret to inform you. I hate having to leave a bad review, but I can't overlook this. :( Sorry Pyramid. Try Harder.
Aug 27, 2006
Pyramid Amber Weizen from Walnut Creek Alehouse (Pyramid)
Beer rating: 74 out of 100 with 30 ratings